Responsive Materiality: Exploring The Role Of Matter In Sustainable Approaches To Clay
Presented by Slow Clay Centre
DETAILS
Ticketed
Slow Clay Centre
13 Keele Street, Collingwood VIC, Australia
Slow Clay Centre presents a thought-provoking forum on sustainability in ceramics. This event brings together three ceramic artists — Claire Ellis, Colin Hopkins, and Steph Wallace — whose practices challenge conventional approaches to materiality and sustainability.
Claire Ellis, fresh from a residency at the Jingdezhen Taoxichuan Art Center in China, will share insights into transforming industrial waste into ceramics. Colin Hopkins, following his three-month residency in Shigaraki, Japan, will discuss his innovative use of local materials and experimental ceramic techniques. Steph Wallace responds directly to the landscape of Ballarat, reflecting on the environmental impact of ongoing gold mining.
The discussion is presented in conjunction with Clay Matters and will be moderated by Clay Matters member and ceramic artist, Amelia Black, and will explore material reuse, environmental impact, and creative adaptation in ceramics.
Participants
Claire Ellis
Claire Ellis is a ceramic artist and designer based on the lands of the Kulin Nation whose practice explores material reuse and sustainability. With a background as a chef at Attica, she brings an experimental approach to ceramics, incorporating transformed local by-products and waste streams into her work. Her research-driven practice has earned recognition in exhibitions and art prizes both in Australia and internationally. In 2024, Claire undertook a residency at the Jingdezhen Taoxichuan Art Center in China, where she explored the region’s rich porcelain traditions and exhibited in her solo show Man’s Treasure.
Colin Hopkins
Colin Hopkins is a multidisciplinary artist whose work spans ceramics, architecture, and music. His practice is deeply influenced by global travels, from Japanese temples to European streetscapes, and is underpinned by a commitment to sustainability. A recipient of multiple awards, he has exhibited and presented at institutions such as the National Gallery of Victoria and the Australian Ceramics Triennale. In 2024, Colin completed a three-month residency in Shigaraki, Japan, where he explored traditional ceramic techniques and their intersection with contemporary design.
Steph Wallace
Steph Wallace is a ceramic artist based in Ballarat, Victoria, whose work reflects on cultural identity and the transformation of landscape. Drawing from her UK heritage and life on Wadawurrung country, she merges traditional and experimental techniques to interrogate the scars left by gold mining on the land. Wallace’s work is held in public collections and has been exhibited at institutions including the Art Gallery of Ballarat and Craft Victoria. Through her sculptural forms, she examines erosion, impermanence, and the colonial legacies embedded in the terrain.